Flying free
by laurashrub
Summary: She came to the Tower, searching for help and a purpose. But in a team that is still hurting after Terra's betrayal...is this need enough to gain their trust? Extra details inside.


**A/N**

**_Hello everyone! The story 'Flying free' is the edited version of 'Fly Again', one of my first fanfics. While it has been completed, I felt that there were pieces of the story that could have been improved upon. This will be the result of careful consideration._**

**_This is the first time I've edited a fanfic so I would appreciate patience. It's a difficult task. I really hope you enjoy it the second time round and (like anyone) I would love to hear what you think. Enjoy!_**

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There are many stories that have been told of heroes. From the dawn of time, they have been the ones who have saved the helpless whether through the use of brains or brawn. They can be arrogant or bashful. They can be good-looking or not. Those that regard them as heroes can do so grudgingly or whole-heartedly. They can be worshipped and regarded as a beacon of hope. But they can also be seen as a menace, turned to at the last possible second. Regardless of the individual or public opinion, every hero needs a beginning. Some just stumble into it by being in the right place at the right time. Others long for the glory that comes with the title, waiting for that Right Time. Others are motivated by events around them and others feel it to be their duty to defend what they can. The world contains many of these heroes, young and old, male and female. Some are not from this earth, crashing or appearing for various reasons. Some come to warn the earth. Others are sent to preserve life. Some choose to bless their adoptive world. Others were on the earth to begin with. They are human. Some are granted abilities far beyond our imagination and tasked with the responsibility of millions of lives. Most are not. Those that are have a choice. They can train their minds and their bodies, learning to master their abilities and move on with life. They regard it as a talent and treat it as such. Others are not so fortunate. They struggle with their gifts, inadvertently allowing the power to master them. Here lies the choice. They can isolate themselves from humanity, and just let go. They will die soon enough. 

Then again, others _learn_ their abilities by being taught.

This is a story about one such human.

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Jump city was wet. Very wet. Everywhere you walked around here you would hear the same phrase echoing around the streets and alleyways. 

"_It was so beautiful yesterday!"_ they moan as if the weather has somehow wronged them. It doesn't matter that just yesterday, those same people had been complaining about the humidity. Those who were fortunate huddled together at home, enjoying the warmth and without a care in the world. Others were not so lucky.

Outside the rain poured down, creating poor visibility and increasing the risk of accidents. Unlucky motorists drove over the city bridge which, on a clear day, over looked the Tower in which housed the local heroes of the town. Tonight, it was barely a shadow. Each automobile crawled along the road, headlights cutting through the lashing water, wipers on overload as each driver leaned forward, squinting in between the droplets. Any radios that were on were ignored. Now was not the time for singing tunelessly and loudly. In this city, anything was possible. In this weather anything could happen. In a small blue car, crawling like so many others over this bridge, Sam Fellen was struggling to see out of his windscreen. He focused on what was straight ahead, trying not to think of how happy he would be once he got home. He must concentrate on getting home to his wife and the warm family home. He was frustrated and tired. Work had been mental and it had taken everything in his power not to throttle his Superior who had decided that the entire office should listen to a speech about communication. Had the man _been_ communicating with his colleagues, he would have realised that every single one of them was trying to get home. Most of the floor was starting to come down with a cold and a long winded speech on a wet day was not what they needed. A flash of lightning startled him out of his musings. His foot slipping , Sam automatically pushed on the brake pedal before skidding to a halt. He winced at the violent blast of a car horn behind him from someone who didn't appreciate the surprise. He moaned a little, resting his head against the steering wheel for a moment. Could this get any worse? A second blast told him it could if he did not shift himself.. Raising his leaden head when he glanced to his right and did a double take. Someone was standing there.

The figure was not standing on the ground of the bridge, as Sam had originally hoped but rather on the metal posts that both made it and held it up. The figure wore a long, dark raincoat and stood absolutely still. Feeling his heart stop, Sam gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white for a moment, trying to collect his courage. Taking a deep breath and praying he was wrong, he got out of the safety of his car.

"Hey!" he called, but the wind just blew his words away. He yelled louder, and while he was certain the words could not be heard, the sound of his voice caused the figure to turn. Sam was amazed at the sight. A young girl stood there, her face in intermittent shadow. With another flash of lightning, he felt his heart break. She couldn't have been any older than sixteen. About the age of his eldest daughter. Why was she here? She in turn just stared at him for a while, then looked back at the river .Realising what was about to happen, Sam tried calling again, desperate to stop her but a car horn blared at him once more.

"Hey buddy! Move it will ya?" a harsh voice, filled with as much frustration as possible, yelled. "Some of us want to get home!"

"Give me a second!" Sam answered, his anxiety changing to frustration, his eyes never leaving the girl. She didn't move.

"MOVE!" the man answered, thumping the horn with his fist.

"I said WAIT!"

He would never forgive himself for turning to look at his aggressor.

When he turned back to check on the girl, his body stiffened and all his strength left him. Where she had been, there was now empty space.

Sinking to the ground, he closed his eyes against a world of car horns and frustrated voices. None of that registered. All he could hear now were two words, turning over and over in his heart and head.

_"I failed."_

Our focus now moves away from Sam. The angry driver will get out of his car to yell at him some more before he gets close enough to see that Sam is weeping. Horrified and a little disturbed, someone else will call the police while the driver gently coaxes Sam back to the immediate present and guides him to a warm, dry car. He will be alright.

Let us move instead to the edge of the bridge, or rather to the shore where we will get a better view.

If anyone could see beyond their own hand in this weather, what was to happen next would have shocked and surprised them. A flash of lightning lights up a shadow of a figure, as it seems to leap from the bridge in the centre of the city. It falls, plummeting to almost certain death the darkness and the rain joining together to hide the figure from all unsuspecting eyes. Nobody can see it tonight. Hopefully no one will. All that now lies between her and the dirty, swirling river water below, are a few sharp rocks which can easily injure her. It will be far too easy for those rocks to break her and kill her.

If anyone had been able to see more than a few millimetres ahead of them, they would have been even more shocked to see the same figure suddenly pull out of the fall and move mere inches from the water surface. By the time Sam Fellen has managed to gather his wits about him and moves to look over the edge of the bridge, she has long since gone. He will not see her, and nor will anyone else. The girl's coat rests tucked under her arm, and great russet wings, now free from all restraints, beat strongly against a cold wind. They carry her over waves and gently brush the water. She soars over the water and gets knocked back but she keeps going. She has to. Her goal is simple, and her destination obvious. Time and time again she was thrown back by the wind, but time and time again she struggled her way forward. Somehow she remains above the water. If she falls back, she knows that she is lost. Giving up is not an option. At last, exhausted and cold, she flops onto a steady surface. The rain continues to pour around her, soaking her to the core, but she doesn't care. She no longer has the energy to try. All she can do now is try to find a sheltered spot, wrap herself in the soaking old coat for warmth and try to get some rest. She needs as much energy as she can summon for the next few hours.

She prays for the strength and the courage she needs to ask for help before settling down to rest.

In the morning, she would brave the next hurdle. In the morning, she would ask the Teen Titans to help her.

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**A/N**

**_So...first chapter. I know it's not terribly exciting but stay with me if you can._**

**_On another note, I would definitely appreciate help with this story. Since I'm going through this for a second time there may be things that I don't notice since I know the story and how it's going to go. Can you let me know if you are willing to beta this for me? Thank you!_**


End file.
